Hafslund Celsio

The Approach

Hafslund Celsio will retrofit its waste incineration facility with a carbon capture unit. The facility currently processes approximately 350,000 tons of waste each year. The incineration process generates two types of CO2 emissions: biogenic emissions from organic materials, such as spoiled paper and cardboard, and fossil emissions from inorganic materials, like plastics. Currently, both types of emissions are vented as a byproduct of the incineration process. The planned retrofit will include a CO2 capture unit that captures both types of emissions before they are vented. The captured CO2 will be liquefied and transported by ship to the Northern Lights facility for permanent geological storage.

The Case for Hafslund Celsio

When done right, waste-to-energy is the best way to manage pre-sorted, residual waste with no other useful purpose. Waste in Norway is regulated according to the EU Waste Framework Directive, which means the residual waste entering this facility has had recyclable material sorted out. This waste generates methane if left untreated. Incinerating it for heat or electricity turns methane-emitting waste into a low-carbon source of heat and electricity.

Adding a unit to capture CO2 from these facilities has the potential to deliver 400 million tons of carbon removal per year by 2050. The potential for carbon removal from waste-to-energy retrofits stands at around 100 million tons of CO2 today and could exceed 400 million tons by 2050. In addition to the tons of CO2 removed from the atmosphere, these retrofits also result in an equivalent amount of avoided fossil CO2 emissions.

Because most of the infrastructure already exists, retrofits can deliver affordable tons at scale. In Europe alone, there are approximately 500 waste-to-energy facilities currently operating that could be retrofitted, enabling the removal of hundreds of millions of tons of CO2. Instead of needing to build new infrastructure for carbon removal, retrofits make the most out of existing structures.

Pricing and Delivery

The total offtake amount from Frontier buyers is $31.6 million for 100,000 tons. The price accounts for both the removal itself as well as measuring, reporting and verifying (MRV) that each ton is safely and permanently stored.